


An Evening At The Spectator

by TajaReyul



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Het, Karaoke, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-16
Updated: 2014-02-16
Packaged: 2018-01-12 15:43:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1190679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TajaReyul/pseuds/TajaReyul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry and Tonks have plans for the evening--until Charlie shows up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Evening At The Spectator

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ken Mellies](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Ken+Mellies).



> This is a birthday fic. I have no idea what the actual Spectator is like. I just picked the name out of a list of karaoke bars in London.

"Wotcher, Harry."

"Morning, Tonks. Rough night?" It seemed a safe question as her hair was a dishwater blonde this morning instead of bubblegum pink or intense emerald.

"Teddy kept me awake all night. Still teething."

"You should have Flooed me. I'd have come over and spelled you."

"No need for both of us to look like death warmed over."

"Not death warmed over, love, just a bit peaky." He frowned briefly. Damn Remus for dying and leaving her to raise their son alone. She waved her hand in a rolling motion to encourage him to catch her up on what she'd missed in the morning meeting. He shook off his annoyed funk. "Right, then, first order of business today is re-interviewing the witness in the Devinson case."

The day ground along, with new information popping up from unexpected sources, moving each of their open cases along by tiny increments. Harry didn't mind the tedium. He was partnered up with Tonks, and that meant that even the worst days at work were better than the best days in which he didn't see her.

After Remus died, Harry had taken his responsibilities as Teddy's godfather very seriously, learning how to change nappies and warm a bottle to exactly the right temperature. He found that he loved being needed in a way that didn't put his life on the line. Caring for Teddy was what saved him when he and Ginny finally broke it off.

When he'd completed his Auror training, he'd been assigned to Tonks as a partner, and they found they worked well together. She didn't exactly need him, but she depended upon him, both at work, and after to help her with Teddy. He didn't fall in love with her until the first time she saved his life--though who wouldn't have fallen in love with her when she stood over them, wand blazing in their defence, her hair like a sapphire flame? Harry's Gryffindor courage failed him when it came to declaring his love, though. What did he have to offer her? Sure, he was The Boy Who Lived, but that carried its own baggage.

"Charlie!" Tonks squealed and jumped up to catch the burly dragon keeper in a fierce hug. "When did you get in?"

Harry looked up in surprise. Ron hadn't said a thing about his older brother coming home for a visit.

"Yesterday," Charlie answered. "Had to let Mum fuss over me before I could get away to see my best mate. How've you been?" He held her at arm's length and looked her up and down.

"Oh fine, just fine."

"Tonks," said Charlie warningly.

"No, really, Charlie. Some good, some bad, like usual."

"All right then. Any chance of us getting together to lift a few pints tonight?"

"Of course. Harry and I were going out tonight, but I'm sure you can tag along."

"Charlie. How long has it been?" said Harry with a smile that was far from easy. He rose and extended his hand to the man who would have been his brother-in-law, once upon a time. 

"Two Christmases ago, I think. Listen, if you two have something planned, I don't want to intrude."

"No, you're not in the country very often. I don't want to take away from the time Tonks gets to spend with you. She and I can reschedule."

"Bollocks," Tonks interjected. "I finally got you to agree to get up on stage. I'm not missing that for anything."

"What's this?" Charlie asked, perplexed.

"Karaoke," Tonks and Harry replied in unison. "No way am I letting you out of your promise, Potter," Tonks continued.

"Are you feeling perfectly well?" Charlie put the back of his hand to Tonks's forehead. "Karaoke?"

"Shut it, you. You don't have to come along if you don't want to."

"No, no. I'll be there with bells on. Dinner first? My treat."

"You're on. Now get your freckled and tattooed arse out of here. Some of still have to work for a living."

Harry remained silent during the byplay between his partner and the dragon keeper. After Charlie swaggered out, though, he turned to Tonks and said, "I wasn't trying to weasel out of my promise. Go spend time with Charlie. You don't know when he's going to be back."

"Potter, what's got into you? He may have been my best mate back in school, but you're my partner. I don't put my life on hold just because he gets a wild hair and decides to visit."

Harry held up his hands. "All right. Don't get your knickers in a twist."

Tonks muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "Don't assume I'm wearing any."

Charlie returned at shift change and the three of them went to the Leaky Cauldron for dinner. Harry was subdued throughout the meal, and Tonks teased him about being nervous before his 'big debut'. He was surprised to discover that the idea of singing in public wasn't nearly as much of a concern as the fact that he might have lost her to Charlie before he'd ever got the chance to tell her how he felt. 

"Earth to Harry," Tonks laughed, waving her hand in front of his face.

"What?"

"Are you finished? We should get to the club. The slots fill up early."

"Yeah. I'm done."

The three of them Apparated to the alley behind the club in Muggle London and made their way around to the front. It was crowded inside and they hurriedly scribbled their names and the songs they wanted to sing on scraps of paper and handed them over to the woman in charge of maintaining the order.

"You're going to sing?" Tonks asked Charlie. "After taking the piss out of me?"

"I'm here. Might as well," he replied laconically.

"First round is mine," said Harry. "What are you drinking?"

They gave him their drink orders and found a table while he went to the bar. When he brought the drinks back, Charlie and Tonks were laughing.

"Care to share the joke?"

"Oh, Harry, it's not as funny if you weren't there," Tonks said, wiping a tear from her eye.

He smiled tightly. "Well, I guess Ron, Hermione and I have a few of those jokes as well."

"I never did ask," Charlie started. "How is Teddy? He's with your mother tonight, right?"

"No, Charlie, he's at home under a stasis spell," said Tonks sarcastically. "Of course he's with Mum when Harry or I can't be there to take care of him."

"Harry takes care of Teddy often?" Charlie asked, one eyebrow lifted.

"Yeah, he's been great," said Tonks, touching Harry's wrist briefly. "I don't know what I would've done without his help."

"You and Remus both wanted me to be Teddy's godfather. I'm not about to let you down or dishonour his memory," Harry said, blushing slightly.

The woman keeping the schedule called Tonks's name then, breaking the strange tension of the moment. Tonks took the stage, stumbling over a power cord that was inadequately taped down.

"Attagirl, Grace!" Charlie heckled and she flashed him two fingers. As the track started, he leaned over to Harry and asked, "You got something special going on with Tonks?"

Harry paused and then said carefully, "I haven't any claim on her if that's what you're asking."

"Hm," Charlie grunted non-committally, eyes narrowed.

Tonks sang her song without any further clumsy incidents. When she took her bow, Harry and Charlie cheered and clapped wildly.

"Quite the dark horse, Tonks. I had no idea you could sing like that."

"You don't know everything about me, Weasley," she said, smirking. "Isn't it your round?" She held up her empty pint glass.

"Nothing gets by you. Another, Harry?'

"Ta, Charlie." He handed his glass to the dragon keeper.

"Nervous?" Tonks asked when Charlie walked away.

"Not so much."

"Good, I never could understand how you could face down dark...criminals every day and then be scared of singing in public."

Harry shook his head. "When you sing, you put yourself out there, you know? All your innermost feelings and desires."

"So what did I 'put out there' when I was singing?"

"Your frustration with Remus, back when he was running away from you and happiness," he paused, "and a little bit of frustration with all those men that want to date you because of your...abilities, or because you were married to Remus, because of what he was and the things they assume that says about you."

Tonks sat back. "You only know that because you know me so well."

"Sure," Harry agreed. "Just because I knew the specifics, doesn't mean that other people can't figure out that you had a tough relationship with someone."

"Are you two talking shop? 'Cause I can't imagine anything else that would put such sober expressions on your faces," Charlie said, his hands full of their drinks.

"You caught us out," said Harry with a wry smile and accepted the pint that the other man handed him.

"Harry was just demonstrating his powers of observation and his deductive skill set."

"Well, no more of that. Drink up."

Harry had barely wet his lips when Charlie's name was called.

"No laughing," the ginger warned.

He sneered and strutted his way through the song he'd chosen and didn't do too bad a job of following the tune. Some of the women in the audience looked as if they'd throw their knickers on the stage if they thought it would do them any good.

"Not bad, Weasley," said Tonks as he returned to their table.

"Ta very much." He lifted his glass in a sort of toast and took a long quaff.

"I didn't know you even knew...this kind of music."

He shrugged. "One of the M—one of my co-workers had this device and a bunch of discs that you could put in it to play music. It was all this sort of stuff. I was thinking of getting one for Dad's birthday."

"He'd love it, I'm sure."

Tonks and Charlie joked and flirted casually. Harry looked on with increasing dismay, only adding the occasional comment until his name was called to sing.

"Knock 'em dead," Tonks wished him.

"Break a leg, Potter," said Charlie and Harry nodded absently as he passed by, his mind already on the lyrics.

Harry stepped up to the mic and swept the room with his gaze, making sure to meet Tonks's eyes. Then the track started. Harry nodded in time with the eight measure before his entrance. _"Today is gonna be the day..."_ he started. He made it almost all the way through his song before daring to look at Tonks again. When he got to the last, repeated lines, though, he couldn't keep himself from singing, _"Maybe you're gonna be the one that saves me,"_ straight to her.

When the track ended, Harry took his bow. He couldn't, _couldn't_ go back to the table and watch Charlie and Tonks together another second. The back door to the club was just off the stage and he ducked out it to the alley, turning on the spot and Apparating home to his flat.

He should've known they wouldn't let him slink away to lick his wounds. Within twenty minutes a furious pounding fell on his door. Harry wondered if it was Charlie, so used to dealing with dragons that he no longer knew how to treat creatures that couldn't kill you fifty different ways. He opened the door to find Tonks standing there, her hair as red as a traffic beacon. 'Bloody stubborn Hufflepuff,' he thought.

She barged past him, but waited until he'd closed the door before shouting at him. "Potter, what the bloody hell?! Why did you just bugger off like that? I thought we were having a good time."

"You and Charlie were having a good time."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means I didn't want to sit there and watch him pull you."

Her eyes narrowed. "Your eyes are greener than usual."

"And what if I am jealous?!" he finally shouted back. "What difference would it make?"

"It means I owe that ginger bastard a bottle of Firewhisky," Tonks sighed. "He said you were carrying a torch."

"I had no idea Charlie was such a romantic," said Harry sarcastically.

"Potter," Tonks started peevishly. Then she stopped, grabbed him by the shirt and hauled him in for a fierce snog. 

Harry only spared a second for shock before returning her kiss with enthusiasm. When they finally came up for air, he asked, "Is this real? I'm not dreaming?"

"It better be real. I'd hate to think I hallucinated one of the best snogs I've ever had."

"One of the best, hm?" he smirked.

"Definite 'O' for effort and intensity. We can work on your technique, but that's all right. I'm used to training you up by now."

**Author's Note:**

> Tonks sang _Tainted Love_ by Soft Cell. Charlie sang _White Wedding_ by Billy Idol. Harry sang _Wonderwall_ by Oasis.


End file.
